


you have not lived without war

by balimaria



Series: Bali's Dream SMP Fics [2]
Category: Minecraft (Video Game), Video Blogging RPF
Genre: Arson, BIG CRIME, Dream Smp, Gen, Implied/Referenced Animal Death, Revenge, and wanted to write about him going sicko mode, basically I was inspired by Tubbo's stream earlier, that's it that's the story
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-01
Updated: 2020-09-01
Packaged: 2021-03-06 14:41:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,356
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26240557
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/balimaria/pseuds/balimaria
Summary: Without another thought, Tubbo brings the flint and steel together, letting little firefly sparks shower down upon the wood. They smolder for a moment, before catching into flames. Tubbo watches, unblinking, as the fire engulfs the ancient wood, turning it to ash.Something twinges inside his chest. What was he doing? Was this really what he’d come to? An eye for an eye?Tubbo stamps the feeling out. Ponk had killed his dog. He deserved everything coming for him.
Relationships: Toby Smith | Tubbo & Floris | Fundy
Series: Bali's Dream SMP Fics [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2043604
Comments: 5
Kudos: 178





	you have not lived without war

**Author's Note:**

> Join the MCYT discord!
> 
> PERMANANT LINK: https://discord.gg/nj5qfunhz6

Tubbo pads slowly down the wooden boardwalk, relishing in the cool evening. The crickets were out already, replacing the cicadas that had droned on through the afternoon. Fireflies twinkled within the bushes- each a star among their own sky. The sun had set, and the kingdom laid down its head for the night, preparing for what the next day would bring.

And it would bring something, Tubbo thought somberly. It truly seemed like each morning heralded a new conflict. The discs. L’manburg’s independence. The Railway war. And now the slaughter of innocent animals- all to gain leverage upon one another.

Tubbo sighs, his once peaceful mood soiled by the never-ending conflict. His bluecoat uniform sits heavy upon his shoulders. Both the promise of safety and war.

Tubbo stops, his limbs suddenly feeling like lead. His home isn’t far, but even the idea of continuing the walk to it seems like an uncrossable chasm. 

Tentatively, he sits on the edge of the boardwalk, letting his boots dip into the river water. The dark liquid quickly soaks through the leather, but Tubbo finds he doesn’t care.

It was nice here, away from everything. Just him and the river.

“Tubbo!”

Tubbo starts violently, splashing water all along the legs of his pants. Annoyed, he stands and spins around, searching for who had called on him.

His eyes alight on russet fur and a pastel uniform.

“...Fundy?” Tubbo asks, though it is obviously him. Still, the sight of the fox has him undoubtedly confused. Fundy had been the center of conflict within the most recent war, and it showed. Nowadays, he was always busy- never seen without a grim frown and anger in his eyes.

Despite it all, Fundy waves, the action a painful facsimile of how he’d used to be.

Tubbo shakes his head, pushing the thoughts to the back of his mind. No use thinking about that now.

“What is it?” he asks, trying his best to add a layer of cheer to his voice. Tubbo was good at keeping people’s spirits up, or at least he had been when they were fighting for L’manburg. 

He’s not so sure now, but the least he could do was try.

“Nothing good, I’m afraid,” Fundy replies, his posture stiff. “I saw Ponk sneaking into your home. I think he might be up to something. Thought I’d warn you.”

Tubbo feels his heart do a flip inside his chest. He takes a step back, nearly sending himself over the edge of the boardwalk. Fundy watches him, concern hidden behind a mask of indifference.

“I- um,” Tubbo tries to speak, but his mouth is dry as a desert. “T-thanks, Fundy. I’ll, um. I’ll go check it out.”

Fundy nods. Just once.

“Good luck,” he says. Then he vanishes into the night, and Tubbo is left alone with himself.

Ponk. What could he want? Tubbo had been trying to keep himself on the edges of the conflict, but it was impossible to not be at least partially involved. Still, he couldn’t think of what the man could possibly desire from him.

Tubbo takes a deep breath, gearing himself up. The only way to find out would be to check.

He takes a step, and then another. Soon he is running, his surroundings flying by in a blur. L’manburg. Eret’s castle. Dream’s kingdom. 

It feels like only seconds have passed when Tubbo finally skids to a halt before his home. It wasn’t a very grand thing, sure. But Tubbo had opted to keep his place of residence less noticeable after the last… incident.

Fingers trembling, Tubbo reaches out for the doorknob, turning it with a squeal. The door eases open at his touch, letting Tubbo hesitantly step inside.

At first glance, Tubbo can see nothing wrong. His chests are unopened. Nothing has moved. And yet… something still feels off.

Tubbo steps fully inside, letting the door shut behind him. He pauses, instinctually waiting for the thumping of paws against the floor, a tail wagging in excitement, slobber hanging limply from an ever-hungry mouth…

But nothing comes.

Tubbo isn’t concerned at first. Everyone needs their rest, and his dog definitely wasn’t one to miss out on it. But as he scans the walls, searching for a flash of white fur, he can feel a deep hole of anxiety start to eat away at his chest.

What feels like years later, Tubbo finds the only evidence that his dog was ever here. A deep copper stain in the corner, already beginning to dry into a dull brown.

Tubbo isn’t quite sure what he’s seeing. A spilled potion, he convinces himself. That’s all it was. That’s all it was.

But Tubbo’s dog was still distinctly absent, and deep within himself he knew the truth.

He isn’t quite aware of his surroundings, but each sensation of touch flares blindingly bright through his nerves. Tubbo can feel his fist connect with something, again and again. His throat grows raw and painful. His knuckles are stinging violently, lacing a gentle throbbing agony throughout his hand.

A cold fire begins searing away at his skin. It pulls at his muscles, forcing Tubbo to move against his will.

Walk. Hold. Open.

The flint and steel lies at the very bottom of his chest, dusty and barely used. Tubbo picks it up, feeling like he’s moving through water.

It feels so small in his hands. Experimentally, Tubbo grinds them together, watching as sparks drift down to the floor. They look like little fireflies, mulling about the bushes.

His eyes are blurry, though he’s not quite sure why. The nighttime air, perhaps. It had gotten strangely cold while Tubbo was inside.

Funny, that. His skin feels so hot.

Tubbo’s feet pound against the boardwalk. Everything seems to go by in excruciating detail. Each crack of the blackstone bricks. Every vein within every leaf. The shine of torches amidst the night.

Tubbo keeps running. His muscles burn, but he doesn’t care. Everything is burning.

His dog. His fucking dog. The first friend he’d ever had, slaughtered in a pointless battle. By no less than _fucking Ponk._

The flint and steel are grasped tight between his fingers, cold among the ocean of heat.

Tubbo doesn’t realize he’s been slowing down until he’s stopped. Breath ragged and heavy, he lifts his head, staring up at the structure before him. 

A tree. The largest and oldest in Dream’s kingdom. Ponk had claimed it as his own when he’d first come here, and no one had really opposed him. Who wanted a big tree, after all? 

But Ponk did. He’d made his living within its wooden walls, carving out a home inside a living, breathing organism. Everything he’d built for laid within its trunk.

Tubbo steps up to its roots, staring down at the twisting patterns in the bark. It was hypnotizing, in a way.

Without another thought, Tubbo brings the flint and steel together, letting little firefly sparks shower down upon the wood. They smolder for a moment, before catching into flames. Tubbo watches, unblinking, as the fire engulfs the ancient wood, turning it to ash.

Something twinges inside his chest. What was he doing? Was this really what he’d come to? An eye for an eye?

Tubbo stamps the feeling out. Ponk had killed his dog. He deserved everything coming for him. He turns, letting the heat of the inferno lap at his spine. It felt good, kind of. Mostly it didn’t feel like anything.

Tubbo walks away, casting the flint and steel aside. A fire to match the one he’d started was roaring in his ears, even as the hiss of flames recedes into the distance. For a moment, he looks down at his hands, wondering…

Bad people started fires. Bad people gave into the desire for revenge. Bad people trade violence for violence.

Tubbo clenches his fists into tight balls, fingernails digging into his palms.

If his morality was what this war wanted to take from him, then so be it.

The inferno rages on in the distance, climbing ever higher against the sky. Tubbo continues along the boardwalk, watching fireflies dance between the bushes.


End file.
